


Hopeful Hearts

by h3nnatatt00



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Black Jackals Shenanigans, College, Denial of Feelings, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Insecure Iwaizumi Hajime, Light Angst, M/M, Mutual Pining, No Beta, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Time Skip, Pro Volleyball, Romance, Slow Burn, we die like illiterates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-16 15:29:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29456031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/h3nnatatt00/pseuds/h3nnatatt00
Summary: Iwaizumi and Dani were best friends at the University of Southern California until a misunderstanding tore them apart.Now, 7 years later, Dani is the athletic trainer of the MSBY Black Jackals and hasn't seen Iwaizumi since college graduation.  Until she gets invited to be one of the athletic trainers for the 2020 Olympics in Brazil.Reunited, will these two rekindle the feelings they thought disappeared years ago?
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou, Iwaizumi Hajime/Original Female Character(s), Minor or Background Relationship(s), Tsukishima Kei/Yachi Hitoka
Kudos: 1





	Hopeful Hearts

_Wow. It’s really hot today._

Dani was in her shared bathroom getting ready for her first class of the day. She was one of the unlucky freshmen who got put into an 8 AM class on a Monday. She’s never been a morning person, so this class will be especially brutal. Thankfully, this class only happened once a week but that means it’s 3 hours long. It was the first day of classes and Dani wasn’t used to the dry heat of Los Angeles. She finished washing her face and walked to her closet to pick an outfit for the day. 

Being from Virginia, the heat started to give way to the fall weather by this point in the year. She perused through her closet, thinking about possible outfit combinations. She didn’t want to look like she just rolled out of bed, but she wanted to be comfortable if she was going to be sitting in a lecture hall for a few hours. After contemplating between a blue wrap dress and a flower-patterned romper for a few minutes, she just decided on a pair of yellow paper bag shorts and a white halter top. “It’s not like you’ll have an opportunity to socialize in class anyways”, she thought as she teased her short, curly hair into a style that she hoped looked presentable. She put a small amount of eye shadow and mascara on before she left, just to make sure she didn’t look as tired as she felt. After one last look in the mirror, she slipped on a pair of sandals and grabbed her backpack, then headed out the door.

For it being the first day of classes, walking down campus was surprisingly quiet. There were small groups of students walking to class and a few joggers, but overall, her walk was serene and uneventful. She took in her surroundings as she walked. The campus felt like a small town. It had its own buses, apartment buildings, restaurants, it even had a grocery store. She looked around at the beautiful Romanesque buildings and admired the red brick and the graceful arches. It reminds her why she decided to travel across the country to come here. Well that, and the fact that they had one of the best Sports Science programs in the country. After about 15 minutes of walking, she reaches her lecture hall. Walking in from the warmth of the outside made the room feel a little cold. The room is gigantic, and it probably holds at least 300 people in it. She walks up the stairs and sits in the middle row closest to the aisle. She reaches into her backpack and pulls out a jacket and her laptop, waiting for class to start.

People filtered into the room in waves and at 8:00 exactly, a small man with graying hair walked in and headed towards the front of the hall. He remained quiet as he opened a marker and wrote on the board with large, slanted letters:

_ Intro to Philosophy  _

_Dr. Woods_

_Room 112_

He put a cap on the marker and set it down as he turned to look at the class. He cleared his throat and began speaking in a loud, clear tone, “Good morning everyone. My name is Jeremiah Wolfe. You may call me Dr. Wolfe or Professor Woods. I am a Philosophy professor here and I’ve been teaching at USC for 30 years”. He took a stack of papers out of his bag and handed it to a student to pass around the room as he continued speaking, “I’m handing out a physical copy of the syllabus to each of you. It has all due dates, class subjects, and readings, so _please_ do not email me or ask me questions that can be found on there. I know a lot of you are most likely taking this class for a general education credit and that’s totally fine. I hope you all will leave this class with at least one new thing that you learned”. He began talking about the layout of the class and how assignments were structured. The class didn’t sound too difficult. A lot of reading, a few writing assignments, and a group project. But overall, not entirely time-consuming. 

****

The class was let out a little early since today was just discussing the layout of the course. As the students were standing to leave the lecture hall, the professor said, “Oh! Before I forget, I’ve already assigned random groups for the project. It’s a pretty involved project. I would recommend getting started ASAP”.

_Ugh._

Dani hates group projects. Really hates them. She always felt like she picks up everyone else’s slack and it’s a lot of stress for something she could do herself. She mulled over it the whole walk back to her room.

She got to the front of the large freshman dorm and scanned her student ID. She walked up the stairs to the third floor and used her key to unlock the door of her room. The door swung open, and she was met with the euphoric smell of fresh coffee. Her new roommate popped her head out from her room with a towel wrapped around her head and a robe. _Her name was Ana_ , Dani remembered from their very brief introduction last night. When she saw Dani, she smiled and said, “Hey! I made a pot of coffee about 20 minutes ago if you want some. There is some creamer in the fridge if you need it”

Dani opened the cabinet and took out a green mug and poured herself a cup. She sat at the small dining table and pulled out her laptop to look at her class schedule and check her email. She had Anatomy at 2:00 and then she was done for the day.

As she was perusing her class pages and adding assignment due dates to her planner, her roommate walked out in a black, floral-patterned romper and her jet-black hair was braided over her shoulder. She was about 4 or 5 inches taller than Dani and had a thin, willowy frame. She looked like a model with a beautiful face to match. 

She smiled at Dani and cheerfully said, “I’m going to head to the dining hall to grab food if you want to join!”. She was starving after her long class and she didn’t have any plans for food yet, “Yeah, that sounds great.”

They made their way down the campus, now bustling with people and quite a bit warmer than it was this morning. Ana was very friendly and was great at making small talk, a skill Dani definitely lacked. Dani learned that Ana grew up in San Diego and she really wanted to become a journalist. When she brought up journalism, Ana lit up. She was extremely passionate about her future career and Dani appreciated the conversation as they made their way to the dining hall. 

When they entered, it wasn’t overly crowded so they got a booth by one of the large windows. They talked about classes as they ate and Dani decided that she really liked Ana. As they sat and talked, the dining hall was beginning to get louder as the room became more crowded. Their conversation was halted by a tall Filipino boy, “Hi! Do you ladies mind if I sit here? The seating is pretty limited right now”. Ana looked at Dani in a silent question, Dani gave a small nod and Ana responded with a small smile, “Sure. You can sit next to me”. He flashed a relieved smile and slid into the booth next to Ana. “I’m Alex. I’m a sophomore here. What about you guys?” He said with a kind smile. Ana answered first, “I’m Ana. I’m a freshman this semester”, he gave a small nod and then looked to Dani, “I’m Dani. I’m also a freshman. We are actually roommates”, Dani piped in shyly.

They sat and talked for about 20 minutes. Dani learned that Alex was from California and he was majoring in Environmental Sciences. He is really interested in environmental sustainability and he also is a member of the men’s club volleyball team. He was very friendly and he seems like someone that could make friends with anybody. “So, have you guys decided on any clubs to join yet? Or maybe sports? It’s a great way to make friends”, Alex said. Dani hadn’t really thought about it. She played volleyball throughout high school and she loved it. But she wasn’t really built to be a volleyball player and she didn’t know if she had time to join something like that. Ana lit up and said, “They have a school newspaper that I am so excited to join”. “Yeah? I know one of the guys on the club team is a writer for the paper, he seems to like it”, Alex responded. They both looked over to Dani with expectant looks, “How about you, Dani?”, Alex inquired. “I’m not really sure I have time to join anything”, she answered. Alex immediately perked up and said, “Oh nonsense! The school is having a club fair next week. Why don’t we all meet up and find a club for you to join?”. Ana answered for the both of them and said, “I think that’s a great idea! We’ll be there!”. Alex gave a bright smile as he began to rise from his seat to leave, “Great! It’s at 6:00 next Tuesday. I’ve got class soon, so I’ll catch you guys later! I’ll text you”, he cheerfully said to both of them as he got up to leave. Dani and Ana waved as he left and Dani looked over to Ana, “I’ve actually got class soon too so I probably should get going”. Ana responded, “Alright! I’ll see you after class. Maybe we can get dinner later tonight”. “Sounds good. I’ll see you later!”, Dani replied with a smile as she headed out the door. 

****

Dani and Ana were walking over to the library to meet Alex for the club fair. It had been a nice day; classes went by relatively quickly and the breeze that was present all day made the weather pleasant. Ana and Dani met up with Alex for lunch a few times in the past week and the three became quick friends. The two girls saw Alex and he waved as they approached, “Hey guys! You ready to head over?”. Both of the girls said their respective greetings and nodded as they began walking over. The club fair was taking place outside at the large quad in the center of campus. There were hundreds of tables with brightly covered banners and balloons, people were handing out flyers, and students were everywhere. As they walked through the rows of tables, Dani was looking at all of the different types of clubs. Anything you could think of for a club, this school probably had it. She picked up a few flyers: Sports Med club, Young Dems, a couple of volunteer clubs on campus, and she looked at the women’s club volleyball team as well. She wasn’t sure if it would be for her. The girls all seemed a little snooty and they took one look at her and didn’t seem all that interested in her trying out.

Alex came up to walk next to her and smiled, “Have you found anything yet?”, he inquires. She shrugged her shoulders and replied, “Honestly, nothing is really standing out to me. Maybe I’ll just try again next semester”. She was a bit disappointed that she couldn’t pick anything but then Alex said, “How about you ask to be the manager of the guy's volleyball team?”. A little surprised, she replies, “Huh?”. “We _really_ need a manager and I think you would be great at it!”, Dani looked unconvinced. “You would be perfect for it! You already know all of the rules and you are majoring in Sports Med, so you would know how to take care of us. The guys will love you!”, Alex excitedly said. Dani still looked unsure of the whole thing. Did she really want to do something like that? What if she doesn’t have enough time to do her classes _and_ this? Interrupting her thoughts, Alex said, “How about I text the captain and tell him that a prospective manager _may_ come to practice tomorrow? No pressure. If you don’t want to come, you don’t have to. But at least give it a chance!”. He gave her a pathetic pouting face as she thought it over, “Come on, pleeeease. For the coolest sophomore you know?”. “Alright, alright. I’ll try”, Dani replied, exasperated, but not annoyed. Alex flashed her a radiant smile and replied, “Sweet! I’ll text the captain right now! I’m going to head out soon, but I’ll text you the location and everything tomorrow. See you tomorrow! You’re going to love it”, he flashed one last big smile as he disappeared into the crowd. 

Dani made her way back to her room after the fair with Ana. Ana excitedly talked about her future prospects with the school newspaper as Dani mulled over going to the practice tomorrow. She was nervous but maybe it won’t be bad, maybe she will like it. She laid down in her bed, ready to go to sleep for the night.

Her phone buzzed on her nightstand next to her bed, she picked it up and looked to see a message from Alex:

**Alex: Hey! I texted the capt and he was totally down with you coming to practice tomorrow night. It starts at 6:00 tomorrow night! You can meet me at my room and we can walk over together if you want :)**

She read the message and sent a quick reply back:

**Sounds good. I’ll meet you there.**

He replied almost immediately:

**Alex: Can’t wait!! You’ll love it :)**

She set her phone back down and started to drift off to sleep.

_Well, here goes nothing._

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic! Comments are definitely appreciated!
> 
> Iwa is coming in next chapter :)
> 
> I'm a full-time college student with a job so updates will be a little slow.


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